I speak no hyperbole when I say that this is the most beautiful game I have ever played. There are no words to describe the rollercoaster of emotions this game takes you on, but I will try my hardest to.

First off, I never played the game before the Definitive Edition came out, so I can't give any opinions about how worth it is, but seeing as you can't actually buy the standard edition now, it doesn’t really matter in my opinion.

The first thing you will likely notice booting up the game - the art style. It is quite simply one of the most visually stylish games I have played, right alongside Journey and Dust - An Elysian Tail. The hand-painted aesthetic and the heavy bloom go hand-in-hand with the bright lights the game chooses to use for many of its attacks and backgrounds. You will find some of the skylines in this game literally stop-moving-and-take-it-in levels of breath taking.

The next thing you will notice - the soundtrack. It is somewhat surprising to me that one of my favourite songs in the game is the title card song; the calm, uplifting melody perfectly setting the scene for the game you will spend the next 12-20 hours adoring. Overall, it is perfect, the orchestral symphonies going hand-in-hand with the action on-screen - from a heavy, intense song for one of the game's signature escapes, or a calm, almost-silent backdrop to one of the many emotional scenes you will find.

Even after all that, they have still haven’t spared any expense when it comes to the most important thing about any game - the gameplay itself. This combat-oriented puzzle-platformer is infuriating. It is hair-shreddingly, desk-breakingly, appliance-smashingly difficult. And I loved every second of it. The soul link system allows you to spend one of your precious soul orbs you use to power your other abilities to create a save point anywhere on the map, giving you agency in how difficult the game is to get through; it's when you haven't saved in a long time, and then you die, that the real anger begins. You use the save points you create to access your ability tree, which is split into 3 sections:

The Combat Tree, that specialises in improving your basic attack and your other damaging abilities,

The Utility Tree, that includes various quality of life improvements such as drop magnetisation and map tweaks,

and The Efficiency tree, that improves the speed at which you clear the game, with things such as defence, water breathing, reduction in ability costs and increased mobility.

Please, don’t let my previous statement about difficulty deceive you; I am a person who does not enjoy difficult games - it's the reason I haven’t been able to get into Dark Souls that well. Even so, I gave this game a shot, and I’m glad that I did. The frequency that you can use save points allows the game to be pretty easy if you are paying attention and save often, and with the skill in the efficiency tree that makes it so placing a save point regenerates health, it can be a breeze - especially if you play on the easy setting. However, I feel that this is the wrong way to play, as it adds checkpoints to the escape sequences (which are the highlights of the game, mind you), and I think this somewhat ruins the theme of mastery that the game is trying to throw apon you.

And now we reach one of my only gripes with this game, and even this is a double-edged sword at most; I feel that the toolkit is TOO versatile. Each move can be used in so many different ways, and while this may seem like a good thing on the surface, I feel that there is too much overlap, and leaves the whole kit feeling jumbled, and that you could have solved that puzzle with a much easier method. However, this is also a good thing, as it allows you to approach problems in lots of different ways, meaning you don’t feel cornered into play a certain way for a certain puzzle, and you are free to stick to what you know best ( that for me being the light grenade-bash combo ).

And then my final point – the story. I have never been moved by anything as beautiful in my life as this game’s ending. From start to finish, you empathize with Ori on her journey across the wonderfully stylized world of Nibel, and you feel happy for her when she completes something challenging, feel guilty when she takes damage (the adorable squeak she makes when she is hurt helping drive this home), and you feel content for how she has changed the hearts and minds of everyone she has met on this journey, even those that have done her wrong in the past, she refuses to let that cloud what she thinks is right. And the ending, the ending, the ending. I checked based on when I got the completing the game achievement – I cried for 10 straight minutes after the credits started rolling because the game just shook me to the core; and that alone makes me say that this is a game worth buying.

No- scratch what I just said. You NEED to play this game before you die. You will not have experienced true awe and humility unless you have jumped in to what I feel is one of- if not my favourite game of all time.
No score is needed to, or can put a number on the inequitable glory of this game. Buy it now. That is all I have to say.

I can put this review into 5 words: I.♥♥♥♥♥♥♥.LOVE.THIS.GAME. Buuuuuuut, i will elaborate for the sake of you guys. :D

Story (skip if you don't want spoilers)
The story of Mad Max is set in Australia, in a post apocalyptic world where everything is a desert wasteland, and people struggle to survive. The clan called the 'War Boys' terrorize the inhabitants of this area, with their leader, Scabrous Scrotus.
You are Max, a skilled driver who uses one of the last V8's in existence, and is trying to escape from the War Boys, but ends up getting caught. They steal your car, so you jump on the back of Scrotus' massive truck and fight him. While you end up killing him, just before he dies, he shoves you off the truck and leaves you for dead.

Gameplay
The make or break factor of any driving game is how the various cars handle, and luckily, the cars in this game work jut fine with a keyboard, which is a rarity amongst driving games. by just using WASD, you can control the car, meaning you dont need to switch control styles whenever you jump in a car (which will be happening a lot) by pressing e while in a car, your partner who stands in the empty boot (Mario Kart: Double Dash style :D) will repair your car when it get's damaged, as well as automatically when you leave the car. As for ground combat, ammo for your sawed-off is rare as gold in this world, so 95% of the time you will be using your fists. Luckily, it shares the Batman games' combat style, with stuns and parries, only with more satisfying and 'punchy' hits, as you punch much slower than Batman does, making your hits feel heavier. After a little while of combat, you will enter 'fury mode', where your screen turns reddish-white, your attacks stun and become much stronger, and you get more brutal finshers. A nice little touch is that when you have killed a few enemies in fury mode, the enemies say stuff like "H-h-h-he's a madman!", showing that they are intimidaed by you

Customization
This is one of the game's strongets features. By increasing Max's 'legend rank' you unlock new skills, armour, knuckledusters, wrist guards, tools, and hairstlyes, all of which can be bought using scrap, this game's currency.
As for customizing your car, you need to reduce the threat of the War Boys in each area to unlock those area's specialty parts. You can reduce threat by ramming metal scarecrows, destroying oil pumps, transfer plants, and minefields, as well as eliminating the 'top dog' of the area. Doing all of these is very rewarding, as all the stuff you get to add to you car both looks awesome and works well, making you feel like a badass when you blow up an armoured truck in one shot with a fully upgraded thunderpoon (Basically a harpoon with explosives on the end). It also adds a degree of realism, as components like armour and boarder spikes make your car heavier, making it harder to escape enemies in a pinch, or to do effective rams, as they are much harder to connect with a slower car.

Pros
Amazing Driving
Heavy Combat
Satisfying Skills
In-Depth Customization
You Feel Like a Madman :D
A Completionist's Dream
Realistic Car Damage
Great Story

Cons
Can feel like a grind sometimes to get enough scrap
A little annoying how easy it is to die from fall damage

Conclusion
All in all, this is by far the best movie-licence game released in recent years, and i reccomend this game to EVERYONE who likes driving games, or the Batman games, whether or not you are familliar with the Mad Max movies.

I give this game a 8/10! Go get this game NYOOOOOW! :D